Welding is often performed under hot conditions in which the air quality is less than desirable. These poor work conditions are further aggravated by the typical need for the welder to wear a protective welding helmet with a tinted viewing port to protect his/her face and eyes from the intense light, smoke and hot sparks generated during the welding process. It would be a benefit, therefore, for a welder to have a welding helmet that included an air circulating system for circulating air into the welding hood to provide a cooling effect to the welder's face. It would of course be a further benefit to have a welding helmet that includes an air circulating system having a mechanism for cooling the air prior to circulating the air onto the welder's face. It would also be a benefit if the air circulating system included an air filtering mechanism that filtered the air to remove particles and unpleasant odors from the air prior to circulating the air onto the welder's face.